Grandfather from famous fast food commercial passes away

MANILA, Philippines— Rudy Francisco, who played the senile grandfather from the famous McDonald’s commercial, passed away at the age of 96 on Wednesday.

“Sad day today,” Karen delos Reyes, who played as the granddaughter “Karen” in the commercial, said in an Instagram post.

“Rest in Peace Lolo Rudy Francisco,” Delos Reyes said. She also extended her deepest condolences to the bereaved family of Rudy.

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Rudy’s son, actor RS Francisco, paid tribute to his father in a Facebook post.

“I [love] u, dad. In heaven.. [You’re] strong and pain free.. [You’ll] always be in my heart,” Raymond said.

RS in another Facebook post said that the ashes of his father will be at the Immaculate Concepcion Cathedral in Cubao, Quezon City from May 9 to 11.

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Rudy is known for the famous commercial that featured a grandfather having a bonding moment with his granddaughter at a fast food restaurant.

The commercial showed Karen first serving the food to her grandfather. Many times in the video, he mistakenly calls her as Gina, which made the granddaughter annoyed.

At the end of the commercial, the grandfather finally got Karen’s name right while slicing half his cheeseburger and dropped the famous heartwarming line: “Ito, para sa paborito kong apo, si Karen.”

Before this, not many know that Rudy was a Sampaguita Pictures actor in the early 1950s. He later quit acting to serve as the film company’s legal counsel. /jpv